Stackable knock down box

ABSTRACT

A stackable knock down box is provided for the bulk transportation and storage of fresh produce such as fruit. The box comprises a base pallet, and six side wall panels which are hinged together to define a composite side wall enclosure which can be folded into a stack. A number of drop-away base clip arrangements are provided for releasably holding the composite side wall enclosure to the base pallet in both its erected and folded conditions. The box can be stacked in both the erected and folded conditions, and includes a number of panel aligning inserts located at the upper edge corners of the side walls. Each panel aligning insert is formed with an angled contact face which slopes downwardly and outwardly. A number of complemental panel aligning formations are formed within pedestals on the pallet, and have an angled contact face which slopes upwardly and inwardly. As a result, inter-engagement of the contact faces results in the upper edges of the side walls being urged inwardly into inter-engagement with the complemental panel aligning formations.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

[0001] THIS invention relates to a stackable knock down box which isprimarily but not exclusively intended for the bulk transportation andstorage of fresh produce such as fruit.

[0002] Packaging for fruit and other fresh produce is expensive,particularly in the case of sacrificial packaging which has to bedisposed of after a single use. In many countries which import fruit, itis obligatory for the supplier in one way or another to dispose of thefruit packaging.

[0003] It is accordingly desirable to provide a knock down bulk fruitbox which is reusable, and which can be stacked both when folded anderected. One requirement of such a re-usable box is that it needs to besufficiently rugged to withstand repeated use and abuse in the erectedand folded conditions, particularly when stacked.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

[0004] According to a first aspect of the invention there is provided astackable knock down box comprising a base including a base panelsupported on a plurality of pedestals, a plurality of side wall panels,hinge means connecting the side wall panels together to define acomposite side wall enclosure, the hinge means being adapted to enablethe wall panels to be folded into a stack, and a plurality of base cliparrangements for releasably holding the composite side wall enclosure tothe base in its erected and folded conditions, the knock down box beingstackable in both the erected and folded conditions, and including upperpanel alignment and box support means provided along the operatively topedges of the side wall panels, and complemental lower panel alignmentmeans provided on the base, with the upper panel alignment and boxsupport means of a subjacent box being arranged to interengage with andto nest within the lower panel alignment means of a superjacent box whenthe erected boxes are stacked on top of one another.

[0005] Preferably, the upper panel alignment and box support means arelocated towards the outer corners of the composite side wall, and thelower panel alignment means include complemental corner recesses on thepedestals.

[0006] Conveniently, the upper panel alignment means comprises aplurality of panel aligning formations each formed with an angledcontact face which slopes downwardly and outwardly, and the lower panelalignment means comprises a plurality of complemental panel aligningformations each formed with an corresponding angled contact face whichslopes upwardly and inwardly, such that interengagement of the contactfaces results in the upper edges of the side walls being urged inwardlyinto firm nesting interengagement with the complemental panel aligningformations.

[0007] Typically, mounting means are provided for holding the base clipscaptive on the base.

[0008] Advantageously, the base clips comprise drop-away substantiallyL-shaped sprung clips which each have a lower pivoting end held captivewithin a clip-retaining assembly in the base panel and an upper endterminating in an inwardly facing tang which are releasably engageablewith horizontal locating slots formed towards the lower edges of theside wall panels.

[0009] Advantageously, outer corner faces of the pedestals carry cornerreinforcing brackets which are formed with upper inwardly directed tangsconstituting base clip arrangements which are engageable with horizontallocating slots formed towards the lower corner edges of the side wallpanels.

[0010] The brackets are preferably formed with lower inwardly directedflanges which extend into the corner recesses and form part of the lowerpanel alignment means.

[0011] According to a second aspect of the invention, there is provideda stackable knock down box comprising a base including a base panelsupported on a plurality of pedestals, a plurality of side wall panels,hinge means connecting the side wall panels together to define acomposite side wall enclosure, the hinge means being adapted to enablethe side wall panels to be folded into a stack, and a plurality of baseclip arrangements for releasably holding the composite side wallenclosure to the base in both its erected and folded conditions, thehinge means comprising first and second hinge plates joined together bymeans of a pivot assembly and arranged to be mounted to the operativelyouter surfaces of the adjacent side wall panels by means of fixingelements, each of the hinge plates terminating in inwardly projectingtangs for locating in corresponding slots in the adjacent side wallpanels so as to relieve shear stress on the fixing elements arising froman outwardly directed force being exerted on the wall panels when in anopen condition.

[0012] Conveniently, the pivot assembly is recessed relative to theouter corner faces of the composite side wall enclosure and defines apivot axis which is locatable in the region of an intersection of theoperatively inner surfaces of the adjacent side wall panels, with thehinge plates being formed with inwardly angled connecting webs orfingers extending inwardly between the outer faces of the hinge platesand the pivot axis.

[0013] Advantageously, each of the first and second hinge plates areformed with at least one aperture for receiving the fixing elements,with the aperture conveniently being surrounded by an annular protectiveboss, and the pivot assembly comprises a hinge pin and a plurality ofinterdigitating plate fingers extending from each of the webs andscrolled around the hinge pin.

[0014] Typically, the knock down box is a two part box, with all the boxcomponents being carried either on the base or the composite side wall.

[0015] Locating means are typically provided on the base for locatingthe stacked composite side wall.

[0016] Preferably, overhanging strike plates are fitted to at least oneof the side wall panels for allowing the base clip arrangements to rideup and over the strike plates to clamp the composite side wall to thebase.

[0017] Optionally, the box includes an intermediate foldable shelfassembly providing horizontal partitioning for the box.

[0018] In a preferred form of the invention, the pedestals are fittedwith skid planks which are arranged to nest completely within asubjacent box.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0019]FIG. 1 shows a perspective view of a first embodiment of anassembled box of the invention;

[0020]FIG. 2 shows a front elevation of one of the box wall panel hingesof FIG. 1;

[0021]FIG. 3 shows a sectioned plan view of a corner hinge of the boxalong the line 3-3 of FIG. 1;

[0022]FIG. 4 shows a perspective view from below of one corner of thebase portion of the box of FIG. 1;

[0023]FIG. 5 shows a fragmentary sectioned side elevation of the baseand a side wall of the box of FIG. 1 illustrating the clip arrangementfor holding the base and side walls together;

[0024]FIG. 6 shows a perspective view from above of the FIG. 1 box inits knocked down condition;

[0025]FIG. 7 shows a perspective view of a second embodiment of anassembled box of the invention;

[0026]FIG. 8 shows a perspective view of the box of FIG. 7 in theknocked down condition;

[0027]FIG. 9 shows a perspective view of the box of FIGS. 7 and 8 in asemi-erected condition;

[0028]FIG. 10 shows a top corner perspective detail of a hinge and apair of panel aligning formations forming part of the box of FIG. 7;

[0029]FIG. 11 shows a cross-sectional view of the hinge on the line11-11 of FIG. 10;

[0030]FIG. 12 shows a cross-sectional detail of a pair of erected boxesof FIG. 7 in a stacked position;

[0031]FIG. 13 shows a perspective view from below of one corner of thebase portion of a box of FIG. 7;

[0032]FIG. 14 shows a partly cut-away side view of a stack of knockeddown boxes of FIG. 8;

[0033]FIG. 15 shows an underplan view of a third embodiment of anassembled box of the invention;

[0034]FIG. 16 shows a side view of a pallet forming part of the thirdembodiment of FIG. 15;

[0035]FIG. 17 shows a side view of part of a fourth embodiment of a boxof the invention incorporating a shelf, and

[0036]FIG. 18 shows a top plan view of the shelf of FIG. 17.

DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENTS

[0037] A first embodiment of a box 10 of the invention is shown in FIG.1 to include a base 12, six support pedestals 14 which are attached tothe base, and a composite side wall 16. The side wall 16 includes threepairs of opposed side wall panels 18, 20 and 22. The side wall panelsare joined to one another by hinges 24 and spring clips 26. The upperedges of the wall panels, at the corners of the box, are covered withsheet metal reinforcing elements 28 which are fixed to the panels. Thewall panels additionally include horizontal slots 30 adjacent theirlower edges at the corners of the box. The side wall spring clips 26 areright angled and carry spring clip formations which are releasiblyengageable in vertical slots 31 in the panels adjacent their corners.One leg of each of the spring clips 26 is fixed to one of the panels bymeans of rivets or the like.

[0038] The hinges 24 are more clearly seen in FIGS. 2 and 3 with thehinge 24A of FIG. 2 being a hinge between two of the panels 20 and 22and the hinge 24B of FIG. 3 a corner hinge. Each leaf 32 of the hinge isdouble sided, as is shown in FIG. 3, so as to embrace the panel to whichit is attached by means of rivets 34. The outer of the two leaf platesof each leaf has a raised annular formation 35 which surrounds andextends above the head of the rivets 34 to protect the rivets fromhandling damage. The hinge pins 36 are, again as shown in FIG. 3, offsetfrom the centre of the panels to be located in cut-outs 37 in the panelsto ensure that the hinges are recessed from the outer surface of thewall panels for protection against damage.

[0039] The base 12 of the box, as is better seen in FIG. 6, consists ofa flat panel 38 which has two cut outs 40 in each edge for providingvertical ventilation through the box 10 when assembled. The spacingbetween the base pedestals 14 allows for four-way entry for a 90 mm highpallet-jack.

[0040] As is clear from FIG. 5, the edges of the base panel 38 betweenthe cut outs 40, which in use are below the wall panels 20 and 22, arerebated to provide steps 41 having a width corresponding to thethickness of the panels 20 and 22 so that the lower panel edges arelocatable in the recesses when the box is assembled. The purpose of thisarrangement is for the vertical face 41A of the step 41 to provide astop against which the inner faces on the hinged panels 20 and 22 mayabut to prevent the hinged walls from folding inwardly into theassembled box.

[0041] The construction of the pedestals 14 is more clearly seen in FIG.4 where the pedestals are shown to consist of compressed wooden blocks42 which are releasibly attached to the base panel 38 by means of screwsfor simple replacement. The outer facing surfaces of the blocks 42 arerecessed as shown in FIG. 4 by a distance slightly greater than thethickness of the wall panels of the box. The underside of the block 42carries a projecting foot 44 which is made from a robust plasticsmaterial. The upper surface of the base panel 38, as shown in FIG. 6, isprovided with recesses 46 above each of the pedestals 14 and in whichthe pedestal feet 44 are engageable when knocked down boxes are stackedone on the other. Importantly, the outer surfaces of the pedestals atthe corners of the box are armoured by right angled brackets 48 whichhave lower inwardly directed aligning flanges 50 which are locatedagainst the reccessed edges 51 of the pedestal blocks and upper inwardlydirected flanges 52 which are releasibly engageable in the slots 30 atthe lower edges of the wall panels.

[0042] The underside of the base panel 38 carries hard wood skids 54 tominimise fork lift damage to the underside of the boxes. The base panel38 is held to the composite side wall 16 of the box by means of not onlythe flanges 52 on the brackets 48 but additionally by spring clips 56which are shown in greater detail in FIG. 5. The clips 56 are attachedto the base plate 38 of the box by means of a hinge type arrangement 58.The hinge type arrangement comprises an apertured retaining plate 59which is formed with a retaining tang 59A extending into a slot 59Bformed in the base panel. The scrolled end 56A of the sprung clip isheld loosely and hingedly captive behind the tang 59A. The inwardlydirected tang 56B at the free end of the clip is releasibly engaged, inthe same manner as the clips 26, in slots 60 in the panels 20 and 22.

[0043] To dissemble the box from its erected position in FIG. 1,downward pressure is applied to the base of the box within the boxadjacent the wall panels 20 and 22 to disengage the panels from the basesteps 41 and the upper portions of the spring clips 26 which are notpermanently anchored to the wall panels are pried from the grooves 31 inwhich they are located to release the wall panels from each other at thecomers of the box. The spring clips 56 are similarly freed from theslots 60. The hinged joins between the wall panels 20 and 22 of thecomposite side walls, which are now free of the base steps 41, are nowpressed towards one another to pull the panels 18 towards each otheruntil the panels are in their stacked configuration. The stacked panelsare now laid on the base panel 38 as shown in FIG. 6 with the drop awayclips 56 engaged with the uppermost panel to hold the stacked side wallpanels to the base panel. To again erect the box the knock downprocedure described above is merely reversed.

[0044] In use, two or more of the filled boxes 10 are stacked one on theother with the aligning recessed portion 51 of the pedestals of theupper box located on the inside of and resting on the reinforcingelements 28 at the corner edges of the box to hold the upper box engagedwith the lower box against relative sideways movement of the stackboxes. After use the boxes are knocked down as described above with oneknocked down box, as shown in FIG. 6, located on another below it withthe feet 44 of the pedestals engaged in the recesses 46 of the basepanel below it again to resist any sideways dislocation of the stackedboxes during transit.

[0045] All of the box panels, in this embodiment of the invention, aremade from plywood which is bonded with boil-proof fenal formaldehyderesin and coated with modified phenolic impregnated high density resinfilm on both sides. The film stiffens the plywood, gives it a greatdegree of abrasion and impact resistance, and while it enhances theappearance of the box it also makes the surface completely impervious tomoisture. The edges of the panels are sealed with epoxy paint. Treatedin this manner the box components are easily able to withstandrelatively high temperatures and also allow the bins to be steam cleanedfor reuse.

[0046] Referring now to FIG. 7, a second embodiment of a box 70 includesa base panel 72, six support pedestals 74 attached to the base panel,and a composite side wall 76 which includes six panels arranged inopposed pairs 78A and 78B, 80A and 80B and 82A and 82B. The panels arejoined to one another by corner hinges 84 and inwardly folding side wallhinges 86 connect adjacent panels 80A and 82A and 80B and 82B. Sheetmetal aligning and reinforcing elements 88 are rivetted to the upperedges of the panels at the corners of the box, as well as mid-way alongthe side wall panels 78A and 78B. The side wall panels are provided withhorizontal corner slots 90, intermediate clip-receiving slots 92, and anarray of ventilation slots 93. The base panel 72 is similarly providedwith ventilation slots 93A.

[0047] The corner hinges 84 and the aligning and reinforcing elements 88are more clearly visible in FIGS. 10 to 12. The corner hinges 84comprise a pair of hinge plates 96 and 98 formed from sheet metal.Inwardly angled interdigitating fingers 100 are scrolled at the ends toaccommodate a central hinge pin 102. Each of the hinge plates terminatein tangs 104 which extend inwardly at right angles from the hinge plates96 and 98 and which locate in corresponding slots 106 defined in thepanels. The hinge plates 96 and 98 are connected to adjacent panels 82Aand 78B by means of aluminium rivets 108, and are formed with protectiveannular bosses 110 within which an outermost head 112 of each of therivets is countersunk so that the rivets are protected against handlingdamage.

[0048] The hinge pin 102 is offset from the centre of the panels and islocated at the intersection of the inner faces 82A1 and 78B1 of therespective panels 82A and 78B so as to allow the panels to be foldedtogether into an overlying stacked condition. This is achieved byforming protective rectangular cutouts 114 in each of the panels. Thecutouts are formed with chamfered bases 116 against which the inwardlyangled fingers 100 of the hinges rest. The tangs 104 perform animportant stress-relieving function, in that, in the event of the hingebeing subjected to outward stresses, these stresses are not only borneby the rivets 108 bearing against the relatively small areas of therivet holes in the panels, but also by virtue of the tangs 104 bearingagainst the inner faces of the slots 106 to take up and distribute thestresses. As a result, the hinges are still functional and tend to stayin position, even in the event of a particular rivet being damaged oreven working loose completely. As the hinge plates 96 and 98 areanchored against the outer faces 78B2 and 82A2 of the respective panels78B and 82A, they are far better configured to absorb outward pressureor impact in the direction of arrows 117. This would not be so were thehinge plates 96 and 98 located on the inner surfaces 78B1 and 82A1 ofthe panels, as would be applicable in the case of a conventional hinge,where the hinge plates are mounted to those panel faces which foldtowards one another.

[0049]FIGS. 10 and 12 clearly illustrate how the sheet metal reinforcingand aligning elements 88 are rivetted to the top edge comers of adjacentside walls of the box by means of rivets 112A, the heads of which aresimilarly located within protective raised annular formations 110A. Thereinforcing and aligning formations 88 are substantially U-shaped andare formed with angled contact faces 119 which slope downwardly andoutwardly at an angle of about 20° from the horizontal, and fit snuglyover the complementally chamfered top edges 120 of the side wall panels.

[0050] Each of the pedestals 74 is similarly fitted with a complementalreinforcing and aligning insert 121 which forms the lowermost portion ofan angled reinforcing bracket 122 which is screwed to the base panel 72and each of the corner pedestals 74 by means of wood screws 124. Theouter facing surfaces of the pedestals 74 are formed with recesses 126which are slightly deeper than the thickness of a wall panel of the box.The recesses 126 are provided with an overhanging top face 128 which isangled downwardly and outwardly so as to accommodate the correspondinginwardly and upwardly angled contact face 130 of the complementalreinforcing and aligning insert 121. In FIG. 12, it is clearly apparenthow the complementally angled contact faces 116 and 130 of the panelaligning formations result in the upper edges of the side walls of asubjacent box being forced inwardly in the direction of arrow 131 when asuperjacent box is stacked on top of it. All of the corners of asubjacent box will thus be urged inwardly, even when there is initialmisalignment of a superjacent box, with misalignment of up to a wallthickness or more being catered for by progressive interengagement ofthe complementally sloping contact faces 130 and 116. The intermediatereinforcing and aligning elements 88 on the side walls 78A and 78B willsimilarly be pulled inwardly by virtue of screw-in side brackets 131Abeing provided with upwardly and inwardly angled contact faces which areidentical in cross-section to those illustrated in FIG. 12. The aligninginserts serve to relieve outward pressure on the corner hinges 84.

[0051] Referring now to FIG. 8, the box 70 is shown in a knocked-downconfiguration in which drop-away L-shaped spring clips 132 are used toclamp the composite side wall 76 to the base 72 of the box. Pairs ofstrike plate formations 113A and 113B are riveted to the outer surfaceof the side panel 78A along opposite side edges thereof.

[0052] In FIG. 9, the knock-down box 72 is shown in an intermediateposition in which the composite side wall 76 is being folded into a flatcondition. The base panel 72 is provided with scalloped ventilationcutouts 134, and stepped recesses 136 locate the lower edges of the sidewalls 80A, 82A, 80B and 82B when the box is erected. Both the cornerbrackets 122 and the side brackets 131A are formed respectively withinwardly directed tangs 138 and 140 which locate within the respectivecomplemental slots 90 and 92 to clamp the composite side wall to thebase when the box is erected. As is clear from FIG. 13, the pedestals 74are provided with glide feet 142 which locate within complementalcircular recesses 144 when the knocked down boxes are stacked on top ofone another.

[0053] The erected box of FIG. 7 is knocked down in the followingmanner. A levering tool 146 is provided with an L-shaped blade 148, theend of which is wedged between one of a pair of raised access openings94B defined in each of the clips 132 and the adjacent side panels. Thetangs 132A of the clips are then levered out of the slots 92 so that theclips drop away into the FIG. 9 position. The side panels 80A and 82Aand 80B and 82B are raised so that their lower edges ride over thestepped recesses 136, and the major side panels 78A and 78B aredisengaged from the bracket tangs 90 and 92 and pushed inwardly towardsone another so that the entire composite side wall 76 is folded togetherinto a double-M stackable configuration in the manner illustrated inFIG. 9. The composite side wall is then located on top of the base 72and the clips 132 are then forced upwards and inwards so that the tangs132A ride over the outer faces of the downwardly depending legs 150 ofthe L-shaped strike plates 113A and 113B.

[0054] Each of the strike plates 113A and 113B is provided with a fixedleg 152 which terminates in a tang 154 which locates within acomplemental slot 156 located in the side panel 78A. A similar tang 158projects from the downwardly depending leg 150 of each of the strikeplates, and locates within complemental slots 160 defined within theouter faces of the side panels 80A and 80B when the box is in theerected FIG. 7 condition. The tangs 158 are freed from the complementalslots 160 as the box is folded into a stacked configuration, as canclearly be seen in FIG. 9. The strike plates 113A serve to cover theirregular stacked profile of the side edges of the composite side wall76 and allow the tangs 132A to ride up over the smooth outer faces ofthe legs 150 of the strike plates. Each of the strike plates are formedwith a pair of raised bosses 162 on their corners 164 between the legs150 and 152. The bosses serve a retaining function for retaining thetangs 132A in the FIG. 8 position in which they ride up and over thebosses and locate against the upper face of the leg 152. The leg 152 isformed with a rivet hole surrounded by an annular protective boss 166.

[0055] Referring back to FIG. 9, the base 74 is formed with fourelongate boss-locating cut-outs 168 which serve to locate the annularbosses 110 on the corner hinges 84 which are fitted to the side panels78B. The recesses 168 thus serve to prevent the folded composite sidewall 76 from sliding around on top of the base 72. In addition, theyserve to register the composite side wall on the base in such a way thatthe strike plates 113A are in vertical alignment with the drop-awayclips 132.

[0056] Referring now to FIG. 14, a stack of knocked down boxes 70A, 70B,70C and 70D is shown. The height h1 of the stacked composite side wall76 is marginally less than the height h2 of 85 mm of the pedestals 74,with the result that the knocked down boxes can be stacked on top of oneanother with the feet 142 of an overlying box locating snugly within thecomplemental circular recesses 144 formed in an underlying box and thebase 72 of an overlying box straddling the stacked composite side wall76 of an underlying box. The overall effective height h3 of a stackedcontainer is reduced by the fact that the foot 142 nests within thecomplemental recess 144 in an underlying knocked down box or container.This reduces the effective height of each container by the 10 mm heightof each foot 142, and results in twenty knocked down boxes occupying atotal height of only 2.1 m. The feet 142 are formed from a nylonmaterial and have a smooth finish. An important advantage of this isthat the feet 142A of the lowermost container are able to glide on theloading surface with far less frictional resistance than the woodenblock 74 on which the feet are mounted. The feet thus allow a box toglide more easily on the loading surface when such a box is mishandledby the tines of a fork lift truck, rather than allowing the tines topenetrate the side walls of a loaded box, which often tends to occur inthe case of heavily loaded boxes or stacks of boxes which are not fittedwith glide feet 142.

[0057] In an alternative form of the invention illustrated in FIGS. 15and 16, where stacked boxes require greater stability for loading onconveyors, flat bed trucks and the like, the glide feet are replacedwith a pair of parallel skid planks 170 which are screwed onto the threeoutermost rows of blocks 74. Naturally, the stacked height of such boxesis significantly increased as the skid planks 170 sit on the underlyingbase panels 72. The side and end edges of the skid planks are flush withthe corner blocks so as to allow the skid planks, together with theblocks, to nest snugly within the top opening of a subjacent containerwhen the boxes are erected. The top edges of the skid planks are formedwith chamfers 172 for enabling easier access for wheeled hand pallettrucks.

[0058] As is clear from FIG. 15, the base plate 72 is fitted with fourclip-retaining plates 174 which are substantially C-shaped in form, andwhich hold the scrolled ends of the drop-away clips 132 loosely andhingedly captive in the same manner as the retaining plates 59 of FIGS.4 and 5.

[0059] Referring now to FIGS. 17 and 18, a still further version of abox is shown which is provided with an intermediate shelf 176. The shelf176 is formed from two folding panels 176A and 176B which are hingedtogether by means of straight hinge assemblies 178. The shelf 176 restson a pair of wooden support cleats, one of which is shown at 180, whichare bolted to the central interior faces of the side panels 78A and 78B.Additional support is provided by tongues 182 which extend from the freeedges of the shelf panels 176A and 176B, and which are chamfered toallow them to locate firmly within horizontal slots formed at thecorrect height within the end panels 80A, 82A, 80B and 82B. The shelvesare provided for transportation of fruits which tend to bruise easily,and which cannot be stacked at a height greater than half the height ofthe box. The shelves do not form part of the stowed assembly illustratedin FIG. 8. Rather, during transportation of the stacked boxes,approximately twenty shelves are stowed separately in an erected box.

[0060] The box of the invention has a particularly rugged constructionarising from the structure of the hinges, the corner and side bracketsand the reinforcing and aligning elements. The stackability of the boxin the knocked down and erected conditions and the sturdiness of theknocked down and erected stacks allows the box to be readily andrepeatedly transported both when knocked down and erected. In addition,as the box is essentially two-part in form, with no loose components,the possibility of components being mislaid during transit iseliminated.

I claim:
 1. A stackable knock down box comprising a base including abase panel supported on a plurality of pedestals, a plurality of sidewall panels, hinge means connecting the side wall panels together todefine a composite side wall enclosure, the hinge means being adapted toenable the side wall panels to be folded into a stack, and a pluralityof base clip arrangements for releasably holding the composite side wallenclosure to the base in both its erected and folded conditions, theknock down box being stackable in both the erected and foldedconditions, and including upper panel alignment and box support meansprovided along the operatively top edges of the side wall panels, andcomplemental lower panel alignment means provided on the base, with theupper panel alignment and box support means of a subjacent box beingarranged to interengage with and to nest within the lower panelalignment means of a superjacent box when the erected boxes are stackedon top of one another.
 2. A stackable knock down box according to claim1 in which the upper panel alignment and box support means are locatedtowards the outer corners of the composite side wall, and the lowerpanel alignment means include complemental corner recesses on thepedestals.
 3. A stackable knock down box according to claim 1 in whichthe upper panel alignment means comprises a plurality of panel aligningformations each formed with an angled contact face which slopesdownwardly and outwardly, and the lower panel alignment means comprisesa plurality of complemental panel aligning formations each formed withan corresponding angled contact face which slopes upwardly and inwardly,such that interengagement of the contact faces results in the upperedges of the side walls being urged inwardly into firm nestinginterengagement with the complemental panel aligning formations.
 4. Astackable knock down box according to claim 1 in which mounting meansare provided for holding the base clips captive on the base.
 5. Astackable knock down box according to claim 4 in which the base clipscomprise drop-away substantially L-shaped sprung clips which each have alower pivoting end held captive within a clip-retaining assembly in thebase panel and an upper end terminating in an inwardly facing tang whichis releasably engageable with horizontal locating slots formed towardsthe lower edges of the side wall panels.
 6. A stackable knock down boxaccording to claim 1 in which outer corner faces of the pedestals carrycorner reinforcing brackets which are formed with upper inwardlydirected tangs constituting base clip arrangements which are engageablewith horizontal locating slots formed towards the lower corner edges ofthe side wall panels.
 7. A stackable knock down box according to claim 6in which the brackets are formed with lower inwardly directed flangeswhich extend into the corner recesses and form part of the lower panelalignment means.
 8. A stackable knock down box according to claim 1 inwhich the knock down box is a two part box, with all the box componentsbeing carried either on the base or the composite side wall.
 9. Astackable knock down box according to claim 1 in which locating meansare provided on the base for locating the stacked composite side wall.10. A stackable knock down box according to claim 1 in which overhangingstrike plates are fitted to at least one of the side wall panels forallowing the base clip arrangements to ride up and over the strikeplates to clamp the composite side wall to the base.
 11. A stackableknock down box according to claim 1 which includes within a subjacent anintermediate foldable shelf assembly providing horizontal partitioningfor the box.
 12. A stackable knock down box according to claim 1 inwhich the pedestals are fitted with skid planks which are arranged tonest completely within a subjacent box.
 13. A stackable knock down boxcomprising a base including a base panel supported on a plurality ofpedestals, a plurality of side wall panels, hinge means connecting theside wall panels together to define a composite side wall enclosure, thehinge means being adapted to enable the side wall panels to be foldedinto a stack, and a plurality of base clip arrangements for releasablyholding the composite side wall enclosure to the base in both itserected and folded conditions, the hinge means comprising first andsecond hinge plates joined together by means of a pivot assembly andarranged to be mounted to the operatively outer surfaces of the adjacentside wall panels by means of fixing elements, each of the hinge platesterminating in inwardly projecting tangs for locating in correspondingslots in the adjacent side wall panels so as to relieve shear stress onthe fixing elements arising from an outwardly directed force beingexerted on the wall panels when in an open condition.
 14. A stackableknock down box according to claim 13 in which the pivot assembly isrecessed relative to the outer corner faces of the composite side wallenclosure and defines a pivot axis which is locatable in the region ofan intersection of the operatively inner surfaces of the adjacent sidewall panels, with the hinge plates being formed with inwardly angledconnecting webs or fingers extending inwardly between the outer faces ofthe hinge plates and the pivot axis.
 15. A stackable knock down boxaccording to claim 13 in which each of the first and second hinge platesare formed with at least one aperture for receiving the fixing elements,with the aperture being surrounded by an annular protective boss, andthe pivot assembly comprising a hinge pin and a plurality ofinterdigitating plate fingers extending from each of the webs andscrolled around the hinge pin.